


Fairy Academy; Sophyear

by TriceTokushu



Series: Fairy Academy [2]
Category: Fairly OddParents
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Emotional Infidelity, F/M, Family Drama, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Multi, Other, Rape
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-23 06:21:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 17,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30051231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TriceTokushu/pseuds/TriceTokushu
Summary: We all play the game of life on different levels, battling the same hell with different devils. We tend to judge someone simply from what they chose to show until we learn the truth of their pain that only they know
Relationships: Blonda Fairywinkle/ Juandissimo Magnifico, Blonda Fairywinkle/Original Male Character(s), Cosmo Cosma/Original Female Character(s), Cosmo Cosma/Wanda Fairywinkle Cosma, Cupid & Others, Juandissimo Magnifico & Other(s), Original Male Character(s)/Original Female Characters(s), Wanda Fairywinkle Cosma/Juandissimo Magnifico
Series: Fairy Academy [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2098314





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm literally on my honeymoon, buuuuuuuuut I think I'm gonna go out on a limb and start posting as I go. I'm really excited to put this out and I really hope this second part doesn't disappoint! For the exception of the last four chapters, each chapter will be centered around one character with a few later ones focusing on two. I wanted to challenge myself to see if I can drive a story through one character at a time. Just FYI, I channeled my inner Season 4-On Cosmo in this one, so you guys miiiiiiight not like him very much (I'm sorry.) He makes up for it in the third part (hopefully) but yeah.

_Within the smaller suburbs of Fairy World, a shamrock-green fairy sporting rectangular spectacles playfully tossed his young offspring in the air, his son filling the summer air with his over-joyous laughter. Lavender lush grass surrounded their tiny cottage, mauve concrete walls and magenta circled windows hatted with a sweeping roof line. Individual stones lined a path to the indigo wooden door arched in the same magenta wood, and a makeshift mailbox stood before the sidewalk, the surname 'Cosma' signed in dark letters on the side._

_"Keep going, papa!" the five-year-old beamed when his father paused momentarily, holding him by his sides. "I wanna go higher!"_

_"Okay, son." laughed the green fairy, never wanting that ear-to-ear smile to fade as it didn't happen often no thanks to that mother of his._

_Squealing in excitement, the young fairy allowed his wings to cease flight so his father could throw him higher, trusting his father's hands to catch his fall. Father and son always loved moments like this where it was just the two of them, molding their unbreakable bond born the moment the father held his son in his arms for the first time. Men, more often than not, struggled with bonding with their sons because of how their fathers struggled to bond with them. With the curse of toxic masculinity, it's no surprise some boys grow up not feeling all that close to their fathers nor really understanding the true meaning of what it means to be a man._

_Papa Cosmo experienced this with his own father Grandpa Gonzo, and when Cosmo was born, he made a promise to himself that he would not repeat that pattern._

_He would raise his son differently, promoting the healthy expression of emotions, teaching his son that it's okay to cry. It almost seemed reversed with Mama Cosma who instilled fear as opposed to respect, so Papa Cosmo sort of wore the 'good cop' hat with Cosmo. This led to Cosmo sticking to his father like glue, constantly wanting his company and looking to him as his role model._

_As Papa Cosmo continued to toss his son, Cosmo was having the time of his life. This lasted a bit longer, until Papa Cosmo threw Cosmo in the air, and as Cosmo descended, his father didn't catch him…_

_His backside throbbed from the impact of falling onto the lilac wooden floor, suddenly feeling three years older. Eight-year-old Cosmo rubbed below his back, trying to remember how he got there. Pushing himself to his feet, he found himself floating before the teal wooden door of the single bathroom, and with growing curiosity, he gently pushed the door open, peering inside. He looked around the tall walls of floral wallpaper, seeing the familiar pastel-pink shower curtain next to the porcelain toilet seated to the left of the turquoise wooden countertop framing a singular pearl-white sink. When his eyes veered downwards to the white marble tile, his heart stopped from the view of a lifeless body sprawled next to an empty pill bottle._

_The lifeless body that once belonged to his beloved father…_

Cosmo awoke with a start in his bed, the resonation of his phone ringing in his ears. He held a hand to his chest as his heart pumped wildly against it, taking deep breaths as his other hand reached for his phone on his nightstand. Seeing Mr. Wonka's number across the caller ID, he let out a sullen groan before pressing the answer button, holding the phone to his ear as he croaked "…hey, Mr. Wonka."

"Hey, Cosmo, I need a favor."

Cosmo pulled back the covers to dangle his legs over the side of the bed, preparing for what he knew this 'favor' to be. "What kind of favor?"

"Three people called out today and I need the extra help."

Of course. Same old song and dance of _"How can life royally screw with Cosmo today?"_ "This was supposed to be my day off…"

"And I was supposed to have ten people on the floor." Mr. Wonka countered. "But instead, I have seven, and it's crazy busy for a Sunday."

 _Of course, it's busy…_ Cosmo thought to himself, jadedly rubbing his eyes. _It's a diner, it's always frickin' busy…_

"I'll pay you time and a half if you do this for me." Mr. Wonka proposed, well aware that what he was asking has happened six times in the last two months and Cosmo was already wearing thin. "Please, Cosmo? I could really use you today."

Cosmo couldn't help but scoff. Mr. Wonka rarely said the word 'please'; things must be really crazy over there. "…when do you need me?"

"Can you come like, right now?"

"Sure." Cosmo sighed. "I'll be there shortly."

"Great, thanks Cosmo."

After the call disconnected, Cosmo shut his flip-phone and smashed it onto his nightstand irritably, propping his elbows on his lap to hold his face in his palm. Though the evening shift meant more money, that also meant longer hours. At least with the day shift, though less money, the shifts are usually shorter.

Maybe he can muster his way through.

Thornton and Spike occupied the gray-leather three-seater buttressed against the light-teal walls, engaged in a game of Star Fighter III heightened in graphics thanks to the HD 40-inch flat screen.

Spike's high-fade mohawk had grown to a cobalt-blue long top combed to one side with his sides buzzed instead of completely shaved, and he chin grew a trimmed chinstrap beard. His long silver chain hung over his black T-shirt, paired with a dark denim jacket and black ripped jeans with checkered patches beneath the rips, styled with his favorite black combats.

Thornton dreaded his tangerine afro into starter locs hanging just above his ears, and his black souvenir jacket had white sleeves and the large image of a phoenix embroidered on the back, coating his white oversized T-shirt untucked over his acid-wash jeans, his fire-orange sneakers trimmed with white soles with the same chain as Spike dangling over his neck in the shade of gold.

Since off-campus apartments were slightly cheaper than on-campus, originally, they were all going to share a four-bedroom; however, due to the current strain between Cosmo and Wanda, they felt it was best to live in the same _Scorpio's Layer_ complex with Cosmo sharing a three-bedroom with Thornton and Spike while Wanda did the same with Susie and Rose.

As Cosmo shut the door to his bedroom, Thornton turned briefly to see Cosmo dressed in his server uniform with a paper hat over his shaggy green undercut, nudging Spike to pause the game. "Let me guess." Thornton began as Cosmo flew down the three-bedroom hallway into the living room, noticing Cosmo's _'please shoot me'_ expression. "Mr. Wonka called you."

"This 'time and a half' pay better be worth it…" Cosmo muttered.

"Need a lift?"

"No thanks…" Cosmo took out his wand from his back pocket. "I'll just poof there."

"Could you not just say 'no'?" Spike asked. "I mean, this was supposed to be your first day off in like, weeks."

"There's no telling Mr. Wonka 'no.'" Thornton commented. "Many have tried, and those many have not returned."

"Oh…" Spike uttered, though he probably shouldn't expect any less from the manager of a successful diner. "…well, damn."

"Tell me about it…" Cosmo held up his wand, sighing "…see you guys later" before disappearing in a cloud of green.

**. . . . . .**

Balancing full plates on his arms, Cosmo floated from the back kitchen to the tabled booth of a family of five. The three kids hyped on soda and milkshakes bounced in their seats as Cosmo set the plate of food to their respective customers, trying to remember who ordered what. Surprisingly, he got the orders right on the first try. Well, at least he _thought_ he got the orders right.

"I didn't order this crap!" the wife complained bluntly while her husband attempted to get their kids to settle down.

Keeping his poker face, Cosmo pulled out his notepad where he wrote down all the orders of all his tables to prevent this type of situation from happening. "I have here chili cheese nachos as your order."

"I ordered chili cheese fries!" she disputed adamantly. "Not chili cheese nachos!"

Cosmo, unfazed by her attitude, frankly stated "Ma'am, you said nachos. I wouldn't have written it down if you didn't say it."

With the added bonus of an unnecessary neck roll, the customer crossly responded with "Well, I meant fries."

If Cosmo had any nerves left, this she-devil just irked the last one. "I can't read your frickin' mind-"

"Is something wrong, ma'am?" Snarki, Cosmo's superior, suddenly came from behind with a more professional tone than Cosmo could fake in that moment. Much like his uncle Mr. Wonka, he had azure eyes with brassy-blonde hair curled in a small puff on his head, but unlike Mr. Wonka, Snarki's stature more aligned with Cosmo's and his oblong facial structure made him appear much older than just five years Cosmo's senior.

"I ordered chili cheese fries, and your 'buddy' over here gave me nachos!" her bitter emphasis on 'buddy' crawled under Cosmo's skin. Gee, did he _realllly_ need this job _that_ badly?

"I'm so sorry, ma'am." Snarki apologized on Cosmo's behalf, taking her plate. "We'll get this fixed right away."

"Don't expect me to pay for this crap, either!" she continued to gripe as Cosmo mustered the will not to roll his eyes.

"It's on the house, ma'am." Snarki assured before grabbing Cosmo by the arm which Cosmo certainly didn't appreciate the force behind it. "We'll be right back. Sorry for the inconvenience again."

Plate in one hand with Cosmo's arm in the other, Snarki dragged Cosmo away from the table towards the back kitchen out of the sight of customers, pulling Cosmo to face him as other servers buzzed passed them to grab their tables' orders. "What's one of our most important mottos?" Snarki interrogated through gritted teeth, his 'professional' demeanor vanishing the moment he and Cosmo were alone.

Cosmo may not remember a lot of things, but he certainly remembered that stupid motto since Snarki loved to constantly drill it down his throat. "She _literally_ said nachos! I heard it with my own ears! Why would I write down nachos if she-"

"What. Is. The motto." Snarki interrupted, more demanding in his tone. He wasn't one for excuses, especially not from waiters who knew better.

Groaning in defeat, Cosmo realized he wasn't going to win this fight. When it came to Snarki, he never could. "…the customer can fire everyone in the company simply by spending their money somewhere else…"

Venom in his glare, Snarki flew closer to Cosmo, something he always did when he tried to be intimidating. "I don't care if she ordered a salad but meant a burger! If the customer is dissatisfied, that means loss of reputation which means loss of business…" Cosmo maintained his own glare as Snarki poked his chest with a stern pointed finger. "…which means loss of a job if you're not careful. Get your act together, and get it quick."

Cosmo winced subtly from Snarki shoving the plate against his torso, his voice lowered to a menacing tone as Snarki ordered "Take this crap back. And if I see you screw up like this again, I won't be so nice about it."

When Snarki stormed off to tend to his own tables, Cosmo watched him with a glower, grumbling to himself before taking the plate to the back kitchen.

**. . . . . .**

Leaned against the purple walls of the diner, Cosmo gazed upon the mid-afternoon August sun from around the back of the diner, failing miserably at clearing his mind on his second fifteen-minute break.

To say Snarki lived up to his name would be an understatement; his tyranny left a bad taste in a lot of coworkers' mouths. In Snarki's mind, you were always wrong, even if you were in the right. He'd find any excuse to yell and label you a failure, and complaining to Mr. Wonka about it proved futile. Snarki could do no wrong in Mr. Wonka's eyes, and yet he never bothered to put two and two together to why there've been more servers calling in ever since Snarki was hired.

Let him tell it, but Snarki singled out Fairy Academy students the most. Without a real reason as to why, any employee also going to school full-time were grilled harder than others. Unfair targets of Snarki's degrading criticism, they were held to a higher impossible standard simply because the diner wasn't their only commitment. The diner maybe Snarki's whole life, but that didn't mean it had to be Cosmo's whole life. The only reason he had this stupid job is to pay for the education required to do what he actually wanted to do, to better his life in something far greater than waiting on hangry, overly-entitled customers…

"Is the sky really that interesting?"

Cosmo's attention turned to the voice of his colleague, watching her as she came closer to him. Oddly enough, if it weren't for her navy-blue back-length curls and crimson eyes, she could easily be mistaken as a slightly older version of Wanda. Same heart-shaped face, same slim build, same porcelain skin, both ears lined with silver studs and a septum ring hanging from her nose.

"Where's your carrot top buddy?" Rhonda, another odd comparison to Wanda, inquired as she propped herself against the wall next to Cosmo. "Thought you two always had the same schedule."

"Today was supposed to be my day off…" Cosmo sullenly replied, adjusting his hands tucked in his black pockets.

"Wait," Rhonda arched her brow. "Today's your day off?"

Cosmo sighed. "Not anymore…"

"Wow, that's lame."

"Very."

"So that must mean Snarky McSnarkesten's on your ass again."

Turning his head to face Rhonda, Cosmo slowly blinked as he mumbled "Definitely."

Rhonda scoffed. "Well, I'd probably be an ass too if my uncle made me work every day."

"What do you mean?"

"You mean you don't know?" Rhonda asked as if obvious. "He's a high school dropout, can't enlist in the Fairy Military because of astigmatism, and he literally has no other job experience. So, his uncle makes him work every day so he'd have somethin' else goin' for him. Pretty pathetic if you ask me."

Cosmo paused. "…you had me up until astiga…somethin'…nother."

"Astigmatism." Rhonda slowly repeated. "Basically, he's practically blind without contacts."

"Oh." Cosmo thought for a moment before he questioned "How do you know all that?"

"We went to Poofy Pants together." Rhonda wasn't exactly thrilled in that reveal. "I know more about him than I want to, but our class was pretty small."

"But I went to Poofy Pants, too." Cosmo commented. "I never saw you guys there."

"That's because by the time you were like what, a high school freshman? I was a sophomore at Fairy Academy."

"…ooooh."

Cosmo had never befriended an older woman before, but her 'child at heart' mentality made it less awkward. She started working as a busser not long after Snarki came along, and sometimes they were scheduled on the same shift. Despite being young at heart, her intelligence mirrored that of his girlfriend. He wasn't sure if her odd resemblance to Wanda drew him to her, but she seemed pretty easy to talk to regardless of their lack of commonalities, including how Cosmo hated to read, but Rhonda graduated with a degree in Creative Writing and usually spent her breaks reading if didn't run into Cosmo to converse with.

"…so." Cosmo began, breaking the awkward silence. "Any chance you can get Snarki to take a chill pill?"

"Ha, I wish. But…" Lifting herself from the wall, Rhonda used two fingers to delicately brush along Cosmo's forearm, staring warmly into his green orbs. "You can always come to me to help you feel better."

Staring into her crimson eyes, this wouldn't be his first occurrence of mixed signals. "…how?"

"That's for me to know." She curled her lips slowly, using those same two fingers to softly poke Cosmo on the nose. "And for you to find out."

His limbs felt frozen as she widened her smile at his bewilderment, and as he watched her make her way back inside the diner, Cosmo subconsciously rubbed his nose.

Sometimes when it was just the two of them, Rhonda had tendencies to be a little 'handsy.' A stroke of the arm here, a playful poke of the nose there, all of which were unclear to Cosmo as to the why. This started about a month ago, and while Cosmo briefly mentioned his girlfriend to her once, she'd act as if he never said anything about his relationship before.

Cosmo didn't think he should find any harm in this though. Back in high school, Susie would playfully touch him in a similar manner, and he wouldn't think much of it because the friendzone was mutual. Though, thinking back, Susie wasn't _as_ touchy as Rhonda, and Rhonda wasn't exactly shy about it. He was finally free of those dreaded braces and his acne was almost completely clear. He'd gotten maybe one or two flattering looks (which is a lot more than he's ever gotten) but he didn't think that meant Rhonda would be interested in him in that way.

He also felt…'different' to say the least. Maybe it was because he and Wanda weren't as physically intimate as they once were, but when Rhonda touched him, he felt those same icy tingles he hadn't felt in a while. Since the whole debacle that happened at the Enchanted Forest, regaining his trust in Wanda has been an ongoing, long, grueling, excruciating process. It hurt him to be so distant, and he could tell it was hurting Wanda in the same vein. However, he had to hold her at arm's length. He just didn't feel comfortable with someone he was struggling to trust again.

Did he trust Rhonda?

Granted, he barely knew Rhonda, and they hardly spoke outside of work. Still, things weren't complicated with Rhonda, they didn't take much effort. She didn't communicate of harbor any emotional ties to her exes, none of which Cosmo would have known personally. In a way, Rhonda was like a break. Did this mean he caught feelings? Not as far as he knew. But Wanda caught feelings for someone else before, so he wondered if it was possible for him to develop feelings for someone else. He'd never imagine himself dating anyone else and couldn't fathom what that would feel like…

Until recently.

He still courted Wanda out of his belief that he wouldn't find anyone else period let alone find anyone better. Girls weren't exactly lining up to date him, and in that same token, he didn't think of himself as that great of a catch. Rhonda's borderline flirtatious behavior toward him should send red flags considering he was already in a relationship, but with those same red flags, questioning whether Rhonda was fully into him wasn't a big of a mystery as to whether he could say the same about Wanda.

* * *

_Eight-year-old Cosmo peered from the top of the staircase into the living room, having heard his parents arguing from his bedroom with the door closed. He made sure to keep himself out of sight so that the anger directed towards the two of them wouldn't target him next._

_"I called your office and they told me you left hours ago!" Mama Cosma griped as her husband impatiently pinched his bridge. "Why did it take you so long to come home?!"_

_"I went out with the guys for drinks!" Papa Cosmo reminded, sick of Mama Cosma singing the same tune of 'my husband's a cheater.' "If you'd actually_ listen _to your voicemail instead of calling my workplace, you would have known that!"_

_"Pish posh!" Mama Cosma confronted him, reaching for the phone in his other hand. "You probably called your mistress instead!"_

_"The hell is_ wrong _with you, woman?!" Papa Cosmo held his hand against Mama Cosma's face, holding her back from his phone. "I_ have _. No_. Mistress! _"_

_In rebellion, Mama Cosma smacked her husband's hand from her face, charging with all the strength she could muster. "Give me that phone!"_

_"Get off me you crazy bi-"_

_Mama Cosma's palm clapped Papa Cosmo's check with an echoed blow, a blow which even made Cosmo flinch in an automatic response. Gradually raising a hand to the heat radiating off his cheek, Papa Cosmo turned to his glowering wife with a scowl Cosmo had never seen from his father before. Papa Cosmo had no other reaction other than to push passed his wife, stalling suddenly when he found his son staring down from the top of the staircase before Cosmo had a chance to run away._

_"Cosmo…" his shamrock eyes frozen as if his son were a stranger. "…y-you shouldn't be here-"_

_"Of course, he should be!" Mama Cosma countered bitterly, crossing her arms against her chest. "So he can see what a low-down dirty cheat he has for a father!"_

_Papa Cosmo shot a glare to his wife, her arrogant smug pissing him off more by the second. Shaking his head in denial, Papa Cosmo quickly turned to hurry up the staircase, almost blind to his son frozen in place as Mama Cosma hurled mocking insults, labeling her husband nothing but a pathetic coward before storming off, leaving a worried Cosmo struggling to process what just occurred as a hard slam echoed from behind him, turning to see that his parents' bedroom door had been shut._

_Cosmo sat on the top step for what felt like hours, his inexperienced mind mulling over everything that transpired. For some reason, Mama Cosma thought Papa Cosmo having a life outside his family meant he was going around being unfaithful. If he came home outside his normal arrival time from work, if he didn't inform her of his whereabouts 25/8, if he didn't come home smelling the same he did when he left that morning, if he called or texted anyone besides Mama Cosma, if he essentially did anything that wasn't centered around Mama Cosma and her insecurities, she automatically accused him of cheating._

_Whatever cheating meant, obviously it wasn't good. They argued more than not, and cheating accusations took up 50% of their arguments. Cosmo didn't know why they argue, but it really bothered him when they did. Papa Cosmo would tell him stories of how things used to be, how he and Mama Cosma couldn't keep their hands off each other. Times where they were head over heels, beyond the stars, across the universe, madly in love with each other. That was before Cosmo was born, so that must mean Cosmo was why they stopped loving each other. At least, that's what Cosmo told himself._

_A soft thud behind him shook his attention, a thud which sounded as close to him as the bathroom was in proximity. Cosmo stared at the bathroom door, wondering if some object fell in the bathroom somehow. Pulling himself up, Cosmo slowly hovered to the door, reaching for the doorknob. With a single twist, Cosmo opened the door, and an empty pill bottle lay next to the still body of his father, all source of life drained from his sunken face…_

Jolting awake in his bed, Cosmo frantically darted his eyes back and forth in the darkness of his room, soon turning to read '3:30 am' glowing in digital red from his alarm clock. Taking deep breaths to control his breathing, Cosmo plopped backwards onto his bed, staring towards the ceiling. Such vivid dreams, though they differ in terms of events, have been reoccurring for the last month or so. Cosmo had never dreamt of his father's suicide beforehand, so it puzzled him why he'd start now. No one knew about these dreams, not even Wanda.

If he couldn't understand them himself, how could he expect anyone else to?

* * *

Sitting on one of the benches of Fairy Academy, Cosmo held his chin in his palm, eyes cast towards his black combat boots. A green, short-sleeve v-neck layered the white t-shirt, and his dark denim sported a silver chain held by two belt loops.

No amount of sleep could cure the level of tired Cosmo felt. Trudging through a full day of classes just to clock in for work in a couple of hours. He would call in if it weren't for the probability that three to four other people already have. Plus, he's called in multiple times throughout the summer which only made Snarki harp on him harder. After the day he had yesterday, that absolutely cannot happen or else Cosmo's temper's gonna need a good-ass lawyer.

The sound of someone clearing their throat stole him from his daze, and when he lifted his eyes from the ground, painful boulders weighted his already heavy heart.

Wanda wore her rosette curls down her back tucked behind her ears, full of piercings besides the yellow pearls in her earlobes and an industrial piercing in her right ear. Her yellow off-shoulder blouse layered her mesh long sleeves gloved with her arm warmers, and a studded belt haltered her black leather pencil skirt hemmed in pastel pink covered, fishnet stockings sporting black leather ankle boots.

He observed how little she made eye contact, hearing her timid greeting of "…hey."

On a normal day, he'd probably return her greeting. Today, however, held no room for forced formalities.

"…how much longer are you gonna act like this?" she questioned as more of a statement with a hint of annoyance.

Just as annoyed, Cosmo's emotionless expression replied "Until you give me a reason not to."

Admittedly, Cosmo hadn't exactly been the nicest towards Wanda, but he'd describe himself as more guarded than anything. Has everyone in their circle noticed? Yeah. Has he been called out on it? Oh yeah, multiple times. Did he care? Mmmm. Maybe a little. Then again, they were outsiders looking in. Spike and Alewandro could _never_ understand his situation. Rose's ex is literally a crazy lunatic rotting in jail, and Alewandro knew none of Susie's exes because not only did she and her exes mutually cut ties, their relationships never even reached the level of serious that Cosmo assumed Wanda had with Juandissimo.

With a small groan, Wanda folded her arms as if to shield her nerves from whatever reaction Cosmo would have from the news she was about to share. "You know how…I promised I'd be more honest." She waited for his response which came in a nonchalant shrug. "And…do you remember me signing up for the tutoring program as a private tutor?"

"Yeah?" Why can't she just get to the point already? "So?"

"So…" Wanda pretended to be unbothered by his impatience. "…I went to see who my new students were and…I found out…" she apprehensively rubbed her forearms, a nervous habit she'd been doing more of lately. "…that Juandissimo is one of them."

The way Cosmo scoffed made Wanda wish he'd just go back to shrugging. "You must be thrilled about that…"

"…not that thrilled, actually." came her defensive reply. "I tried to get out of it but I couldn't."

"Oh yeah?" Cosmo rose from his seat on the bench, facing her with a suspecting stare. "If you actually tried, then why are you still his tutor?"

"Students sign up for their tutor, not the other way around!" Wanda refuted. "Ms. Sevante won't make an exception!"

"Yeah, okay…" Cosmo rolled his eyes. He had heard from Alewandro that Juandissimo was released from the hospital two weeks ago, right in time for the new school year to start. Unbelievable; this guy just gets released from Psych, and he's already a problem.

"Cosmo, I'm sorry…" Wanda apologized, something she found herself doing more often than not. "Unless Juandissimo changes his mind, I don't really have a choice."

"Y'know what? You probably could have kept that from me like you have all the other times you've been around him." Cosmo bluntly commented. "Doesn't change the fact that you still love him."

"Not in that way, Cosmo!"

"Yeah right!"

Cosmo hurried passed Wanda, flying in no real direction. Did he like being so heartless to the woman he loved? No, but he refused to share her love with another man.

She was utterly devastated when she heard what happened to Juandissimo, something that, in Cosmo's mind, wouldn't happen if there weren't stronger feelings there. Sure, fairies don't have seizures often. If and when they happen, it's really fricking scary, so yeah, he'll give her that. Despite this, from what Cosmo understood from their conversation a few months prior, Wanda promised to be more honest with him and to have no ties to Juandissimo once so ever.

Looked to him she was barely keeping one half of those promises.

Continuing his aimless journey through the stone paths, his eyes stumbled upon the biggest divide between him and Wanda. Seated alone on a random bench beneath the tree shaded from the radiating sun in lavender leaves, Juandissimo appeared to be texting on his phone, subtly bobbing his head to whatever song played through his earbuds. Besides the same lip ring he had the year before, his chin had grown a small stubble of a goatee. His biceps, more defined than Cosmo remembered, were exposed from the leather vest layering his white wife-beater, accessorized by a silver chain draped around his neck. Black leather belted the waist of his dark denim jeans, footed with black pointed boots.

Was this another round of " _How can life royally screw with Cosmo today?"_

Guess while he outwardly doesn't look terribly busy, Cosmo figured he might as well go let him know how things are going to work around here.

Veering off the stone path into the lavender grass, Cosmo loomed towards Juandissimo until he stood a few feet away, stern hands on his hips. He didn't bother trying to get Juandissimo's attention, because it only took a few seconds for him to look up from his phone, meeting Cosmo's authoritative stance with a nonchalant stare.

The stare-down of the century lasted a few more seconds before Juandissimo was the first to break the awkward tension when he took out his earbuds. "…yes?"

Cosmo wasn't going to waste any more of both their time, so he got straight to it. "Drop Wanda as your tutor."

Juandissimo couldn't be more unbothered. "…why?"

"Your affiliation with my girlfriend is, quite frankly, inappropriate."

"Wow…" Juandissimo sneered, almost in a sardonic tone. "…affiliation, frankly, inappropriate…those are big words for you."

"Don't mock me, Magoo." Cosmo firmly warned. "Or I'll whale on your ass again."

"Look…" Juandissimo exhaled in annoyance. "I have enough problems of my own. I do not need you piling on."

"Then you'd be doing yourself a favor by doing what I asked." Cosmo rebutted, not backing down.

"Okay, not that I owe you any kind of explanation…" Juandissimo stood from his seat, dusting himself off before he continued. "…pero…when I took my deferred exams, I passed by a thread except in Fairy World History. Tu novia is the only tutor offering help in that subject, and I need to ace this class to get off academic probation."

"Woooow, academic probation." Cosmo commented haughtily. "Sucks for you, huh." He never thought he'd hear 'Juandissimo' paired with 'academic probation,' yet someone who, just barely, escaped academic probation, he'd probably empathize if Juandissimo wasn't…well…him.

Whoever this guy thinks he is, Juandissimo had never seen a man so insecure. "Do you truly distrust tu novia that much?"

"I dunno, Magoo." Cosmo remained defensive, inching forwarded. "Should I not trust _you_ , instead?"

"It is not like Wanda would be tutoring me for free." Juandissimo defended. "Students tutors get paid through the program if they have a student to tutor. Are you so bothered that you would stop her from making her own money?"

"I'm not stopping her from making her own money." Cosmo refuted. "I'm keeping my girlfriend away from her ex who's her _ex_ for a reason." Shamrock green glared into blue-violet, his tone lowered to an uncharacteristic menace. "So I am _not_ …gonna ask you again."

Cosmo held his serious gaze with Juandissimo doing the same, and when he felt as if his point was made, Cosmo inched backwards before floating away completely.

* * *

_Eight-year-old Cosmo floated down the hallway of his childhood home, calling for his father. He twisted the doorknob to the hallway bathroom, opening the door to find his father unresponsive on the tile with an emptied pill bottle beside him. "…papa?" he croaked, kneeling down to the body. His tiny hands shook his father, attempting to wake him. The more he shook, the less difference it made, and his eyes brimmed with tears as the realization that his best friend was no longer with him. "…papa, wake up…"_

_"You're wasting your time."_

_Cosmo' tearful eyes whipped to his mother, seeing her firm gaze unbothered by her son's grief._

_"He was gonna leave eventually…one way or another." A few tears trickled down his rosy cheeks when his mother actually chuckled in front of him. "That father of yours didn't even care enough you to stay for his son." She shook her head tauntingly, crossing her arms. "The son he claimed to love to the moon and back. Ha! Yeah…if he actually loved you, he wouldn't have been so weak-"_

_"Shut up!"_

_Cosmo's tears only heightened when turquoise orbs scowled with fury. "Don't talk about papa like that!"_

_Her son cried out from her nails clawing the top of his green shag, yanking his small body from that of her late husband's "You don't speak to me like that!"_

_"NOOOO!" her son's shrieking wails rang out as he was forcibly dragged out of the bathroom, pleading arms outstretched towards his father. "PAPAAAAA!"_

Cosmo's eyes shot open in the dark, the strain in his chest struggling to breathe. He lifted himself with his arms, turning to his alarm clock to read '3:30am'. Part of him hoped that a full shift at work would have tired him out enough to sleep a lot longer than two hours…

Reaching to turn on his lamp, he squinted his eyes from the sudden burst of light shining against the white-painted walls. Gray carpet coated the floor, his hunter-green duvet pulled over the white linen sheets and mattress cover. Lilac wood framed his bed placed near the single arched window blinded by white shutters, and his corresponding nightstand stood next to his dresser perpendicular to the walk-in closet beside the entrance to his bedroom.

His school desk sat in front of his bed, lined with sprawled textbooks, notebooks, a desk lamp, and his backpack, and propped against the leg of his desk was the same green skateboard that he's kept from childhood and the days where he used to skate to school pre-university.

It's been quite a while since he's taken the ol' board for a spin…

What a better time than the devil's hour?

Taking his wand from his desk, he poofed his old green hoody over his white tank-top, keeping his black jogger pants with slippers footing his feet, and grabbing his skateboard, he poofed himself out of the apartment onto the parking lot, setting his skateboard on the ground.

Placing one foot on the board, he used the other propel himself to a minimal traveling speed, rolling out of the opened lot onto the sidewalk. Sparkling stars coated the black blanket of sky, a half-crescent moon gleaming down, adding light to the streetlamps providing artificial lights along the sidewalks of the main road. A couple of cars passed as he skated, some booming in bass from illegible hip hop songs blowing out car speakers. Other than that, the air stood still, no other sounds but the buckling roll of his wheels across the pavement. Something told him to keep traveling south, though south could have been the opposite direction as far as he knew.

He forgot his phone in his room, but he couldn't be bothered to use magic to get it. It's not like anyone would be calling him at this hour anyway. Probably would be nice to know the time though. He'd been skating for what felt like an hour. Exhaustion was starting to creep in, but he had to keep going. He kept going forward, no end in sight to his journey.

Turning a corner away from the roads, Cosmo noticed the moss-laden marble pillars and bricks of grey-orange stood on either side of the ancient wrought-iron gates. He looked up to read 'Fairy World Cemetery' written in iron high about the entrance.

He stepped down on the back of his board to brake, reading the entrance again as if to verify that he wasn't dreaming and that he was in fact physically present in that moment. How the heck did he get _all_ the way out here?

That was when he remembered…

His father was here.

Traveling into the cemetery, he held his skateboard underneath his arm, following the rows of rustic gravestones. Geez, the last time he came here was right after he and his mother buried his father. Thanks to his mother, he never visited his father until now. It had been so long, he struggled to recall exactly where he was buried. A sea of graves, and his father could be any one of them…

That same voice that told him to keep moving forward then told him to look to his right, and when he did so, he had arrived at his destination.

Planted along the second row from the gravel path was the tombstone of Cosmo Caesar Cosma.

Carefully approaching the grave, Cosmo took his time taking a seat in front of it, setting his skateboard next to him. The only other family members Cosmo knew about were his mother and his Grandpa Gonzo, so he was confused as to why there were fresh flowers. Maybe the grave keepers felt generous or something.

A dim breeze swayed faintly through his green locks, at a total loss for words. Here was the man that for eight years made smiling a little less taxing, the man that made him feel a little less lonely. The man he modeled in image and almost by name, the man who showed him what it means when a parent loves their child unconditionally. The only family member Cosmo felt connected to…the relative Cosmo neglected for twelve years…

What could he possibly say to make up for that?

"…I'm sorry." was all he could speak at first. "…mama never let me come here before and…I-I've been busy."

Was 'busy' even the right word? "Papa I…" his lips tried to find the right words he wanted to say. "…I-I don't know why I keep having these dreams…"

Twiddling his thumbs, his mind flashed back to the memories haunting him slumber. All which ended with the tragic vision of his father drained of any presence of life. "What is it, papa?" Cosmo questioned as if he would get a vocal response back. "…what are you trying to tell me?" He waited for some sort of sign, any sign, that his father could possibly be listening. "Please papa…tell me."

All he received in response was another gentle wind dancing through his hair.


	2. Chapter 2

Wanda, seated against the lilac door to her bathroom, stared at her bare arms riddled in the faded scars of a regretful past. The physical price she had to pay to live through the pain of her heart torn to shreds. The pain from every agonizing day the love of her life withheld his love for her.

Over the course of just a few months, he stopped holding and kissing her like he used to. Instead of the warm, gentle spirit she fell in love with, she dealt with the ice in his heart and the harden of his soul. Every time she questioned him, he'd always flip it on her as if she were the one to push him away. Sometimes it was like he forgot how she had been nothing short of supportive through all of his hardships; with school, with juggling his job on top of other commitments…with the fall out with his mother.

She noticed how he wouldn't talk about work or what bothered him or what was on his mind. His texts and calls came less frequently, and his excuses were either work related or lack of energy related. Deep conversations became a thing of the past, and when it came to spending any time together, they always had one or two others around that Cosmo preferred to talk to more than her, even with her sitting right beside him. Sometimes he'd have full on conversations with the people they were with and would say not one word to her. Calling him out would only irritate him and cause him to blame her for nagging, a label he never thought to associate with her before.

And the gods forbid if she acted in the same manner. He'd question whether she was hiding something from him, or if she were sitting texting on her phone with someone outside of who they were with, he'd call her out on whether she was texting Juandissimo. If she didn't want to talk to him or wanted space to just think and pull herself together, he'd accuse her of going to see Juandissimo in the hospital or something he'd imagine out of thin air, just for him to accuse her of still being in love with her ex.

No matter what she said or what she did to prove him wrong, Cosmo was convinced otherwise. So much so, that she wondered whether he even loved her anymore.

"Wanda?" she heard Susie knock from outside the bathroom. "Do you wanna come with me to take Gammie to dialysis?"

"…sure." Wanda wasn't sure if her murmur could be heard; she felt as if she lacked the voice to be heard most days. "Now?"

"If you're ready?"

"…Give me a minute?"

"Kay, I'll wait in the car."

Wanda waited before she could assume Susie had left her room, and giving into the egging voices screaming in her mind, she rose from the gray-granite tile to reach for the medicine cabinet just above her sink, searching for an old friend. Retrieving her razor, she pressed the subtle chill of the blade against the arm already exposed, and with a drag across the skin, she winced from tearing of flesh crying crimson tears, pooling against the sink's surface.

Willpower was a luxury she couldn't afford; rubber bands soon ceased to provide the same comfort as her blade once did. She managed to keep her relapse a secret from everyone, especially Cosmo. At that point, she wouldn't be surprised if Cosmo showed little empathy for her scars. He felt little empathy for a lot of the damage he's already inflicted…

Taking out her peroxide that was stored next to her razor and band aids, she twisted the cap and used toilet paper from the roll suspended from the side of the sink's cabinet to pour a sizable amount to disinfect the wound. The hiss of white bubbles burning in a buzzing tingle made her flinch; disinfecting her wounds actually hurt more than causing them in the first place.

She used a band aid to stop further bleeding, running water and using her hand to splash away the blood that trickled down. Returning all items to their respective hiding spots, she gazed upon the tattered reflection of the pieces struggling to mend themselves, rolling down her sleeve and pulling her arm warmer to hide the deed taboo to those who could never understand.

Remembering that Susie was waiting for her, she unlocked the bathroom knob and inhaled a shaky breath, forcing herself to pretend her external wounds were just as invisible as the internal whips slashing larger gashes in her soul.

**. . . . . .**

While Susie helped Grandma Cocoa check in for her dialysis appointment, Wanda sat in one of the waiting area chairs, staring mindlessly into the screen of the TV repeating droning medical ads and infomercials as she stroked her inflicted arm.

Once Grandma Cocoa was escorted by one of the nurses to the dialysis floor, Susie flew to the empty chair next to her best friend. Her black kinks had been braided to one side on the left of her head, tied off to a larger side puff from the growth of her natural hair. A silver chain necklace rested just above her black scoop neck crop tank paired with her faux leather jacket, accessorized with a decorative chain clasped over her right sleeve. Her indigo studded belt wrapped around her bleach-washed skinny jeans distressed over the kneecaps, footed with matching indigo platform ankle boots.

Taking her seat, Susie uttered a somewhat enthusiastic statement. "Now we wait…"

Grandma Cocoa received the terrible news that her kidneys reached end stage, and four months in, Susie and her father Bernard fell into a routine. Susie's schedule consisted of the least amount of classes Tuesdays and Thursdays, so when Grandma Cocoa was scheduled for Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, Susie agreed to transport her grandmother to dialysis, and depending on whether Bernard could clock off of work in time, he would have his friend Quandero give a lift to pick up Grandma Cocoa when her five hours were done. This, of course, was only temporary until Grandma Cocoa could receive her peritoneal catheter, that way she could just dialyze while she slept for eight hours and she wouldn't have to rely on Susie and Bernard to transport her.

This was one of those days wherein Bernard would be working overtime, so Susie was left to take Grandma Cocoa to and from dialysis. On days like this, Susie would either take advantage of the less than subpar hospital cuisine, while other days, depending on whether she'd bring company, she'd leave for the diner or somewhere food didn't taste like bland rice cakes.

"Wanna go get something to eat?" Susie inquired, nudging Wanda to get her attention.

"…no thanks." Wanda wearily declined, averting her eyes.

Noticing the gloom in her tone, Susie waits for Wanda to make eye contact before questioning "Did you relapse again?"

Wanda turned away, eyes locked on the tiled flooring.

"Wanda, why do you keep punishing yourself like this?" Susie sincerely asked. "You _know_ how unhealthy that is…"

"Maybe I deserve it…" Wanda irritably shrugged, wanting the focus taken off of her.

"Or _maybe_ you deserve a boyfriend who doesn't treat you the way he does."

This wasn't the first time Susie made a similar comment, nor did these comments solely come from Susie. But in considering how complicated things were between her and Cosmo currently, she didn't need to be reminded how weak she was in allowing her esteem to be Cosmo's insecurity punching bag. "Look, I _don't_ need this from you right now…"

Susie was about to rebuttal when her eyes caught the sight of the girl with flaxen curls and the pink diaper-wearing god. "…what's Blonda doing here?"

Wanda turned in her chair, watching her twin sister and the blush-pink fairy she'd seen maybe a few times around campus venturing towards the elevator, appearing to know where they were going. Wanda wasn't aware of anyone Blonda would know being in the hospital considering how much they haven't talked. Under normal circumstances, would she have cared? Probably not. Yet something felt off about the distress in her sister's brow before the door of the elevators shut. She hadn't seen Blonda so troubled since…well…ever.

Without much of a word, Wanda rose from her seat to follow her sister, causing Susie to follow behind as Wanda pressed the button. Figuring out what floor Blonda went wouldn't have been difficult since there were only two levels, so when she and Susie exited the elevator, they spotted Blonda and Cupid entering a room located on the middle right of the hall among the flutter of nurses and medical staff. Susie followed Wanda down the corridor until they paused in front of the glass wall with '213' written vertically in white paint, peeking from the side of the solid wall sectioned from the glass door to remain unseen by the other known occupants of the room.

Her Uncle Piero, jet black combover hidden from his beige fedora, held his signature serious expression in his elongated face, clothed in a copper sweater vest with long-sleeve white button-up and tan chinos, hovered next to her Uncle Carmine, curly navy-blue hair poking from his own beige gray fedora, more heavy-set than his brother in his blue-gray blazer layering the blue and white pinstripe shirt, tucked into his brown slacks.

She could see her twin Blonda, light flaxen curls tucked behind her ears down her back, and the same white-diamond pearls occupied her ears as well as in the form of a choker, matching her white pumps. Her teal crop barely reached passed her belly button, a neon-pink buckle wide belt circled her waist over her denim mini skirt, baby-pink legging cropped just above her knees. The fairy beside her, someone named Cupid if Wanda remembered correctly, had his blush-pink swoop cut short in neat jagged edges, and a white sleeveless crop top with blush-pink short-sleeves exposed his mid-section belted in Cuban silver chain over his diaper with that same chain wrapped around his neck in a choker just above his collarbone.

When Wanda spotted the motionless figure lying in baby-blue cotton, she wasn't sure whether to be shocked or jaded. Multiple IVs poked through the veins of both arms with wires sticking out from the collar of hospital gown, hooked to a heart monitor. A band laced around his head latched the clear cylindrical tube lodged in his throat, attached to a railroad track of tubes hooked to a ventilator with an oxygen level display across the screen. His eyes appeared sunken, skin pale as a ghost. The fact of artificial life pumping into his body gave Wanda the clue she needed to come to a conclusion...

Big Daddy was dying.

"Wanda?" Susie finally whispered with a soft nudge. "You okay?"

Wanda turned back to peer through the glass, watching the lips of her relatives moving in conversation but unable to make out anything they were saying. She got the idea to attempt to open the door ever so slightly, ignoring Susie's questioning of her intensions, and with just enough force, Wanda mustered the strength to crack the door ajar enough to hear what could be said without drawing attention to herself.

"Carmine and I have been talkin'." she could hear Piero explain, his baritone calm and collected. "We dunno whether we can keeps Big Daddy on dis life support…"

"What do you mean you don't know?!" Blonda didn't sound too happy about this decision. "Daddy wouldn't want his brothers giving up on him!"

"He wouldn't wanna keep sufferin' neitha." Piero's coolness countered Blonda's upset. "Plus Dr. Studwell and his team've seen hardly any change to Big Daddy's condition since he slipped into a coma. He believes that machine is the only thing keepin' him alive."

Blonda balled her fists, in disbelief of what she was hearing. "How could you even _think_ to kill my daddy like that!"

"It ain't like dat, buttercup." Carmine countered, his tone equally as undisturbed as his older brother. "It ain't killin' 'em if he ain't really alive."

"Wow…" Cupid scoffed, leaned against the foot of the bed with his arms crossed. "Do you two have _any_ idea how insensitive that sounds?"

Piero's expression creased slightly in annoyance. "Last we checked, wasn't nobody talkin' to yous."

"But you're talking around me, so same difference!" Cupid snapped back, irritated by how careless Blonda's uncles acted in such a stressful situation.

"Cupid, it's fine." Blonda held her hand to him, sensing Cupid's frustration. "I can handle them."

"Look, what would you've done if this was ya motha' sufferin' like dis?" Carmine tried to reason, unfazed by the agitation in his niece's stare. "You'd wanna end her sufferin', right?"

Blonda, unable to counteract her uncle's argument, fixed her lip in a straight line to keep her tears behind her eyes.

"Oh pah- _lease_ , spare us the reverse psychology!" Cupid defended his friend. "You're not being fair!"

"It ain't about fair." She could hear the lingering agitation in Piero's statement. "It's about common sense!"

Having heard enough, Wanda spun away from the glass door and floated in the opposite direction, lost in thought as Susie floated alongside in realizing Wanda was leaving. No words could speak the conflict raging within. Though she had stated before that Big Daddy was dead to her, she didn't _actually_ want him dead, regardless of the pain and suffering he'd put her through.

"Wanda?" Susie called tenderly, concerned by how mute Wanda suddenly became. "…do you wanna talk?"

Remaining mute, Wanda subtly shook her head 'no', wrapping her arms around herself. As Susie reached to rub the small of Wanda's back, the only thing she could think to do as a form of console, Wanda mindlessly began to claw at one of her arms, scratching around the band aid felt beneath her arm warmer.

Never in her life had she wished death upon those who wronged her, not even upon her worst enemy.

* * *

Entering the fairly crowded school library, Wanda made her way passed the checkout desk to the second floor where students tutors met with private students in the tutoring program. She wasn't sure what to expect with her first tutoring session with Juandissimo. Alewandro mentioned how mentally stable he continued to become in receiving the help he needed, but she didn't think that would change any potential awkwardness as there hadn't been much communication between the two since the night near the Enchanted Forest.

Did she still care about him? She simply couldn't. She tried to harden her heart when it came to him, or harden her heart as much as her compassion would allow. If she didn't, then Cosmo would harbor even more suspicion towards her than he already did. Thus, her concern for Juandissimo sizzled down to more of an 'indifference' for him overall.

Just as Juandissimo once said, his well-being is no longer her concern. At least, it shouldn't be…

Once she traveled to the top of the staircase right of the checkout desk, she took a slight left towards the tutoring area before she caught the small glimpse of Juandissimo a few feet away, passing in the opposite direction. She turned as she watched him head towards the other staircase down the steps, assuming he was going to the bathroom or something before their session started in five minutes. Though, why would he go downstairs when there were bathrooms on the second floor as well?

Ms. Sevante, overseer of the tutoring program, aligned a stack of papers in a neat pile atop her desk when she noticed Wanda approaching. "Hey there!" she greeted in her normal upbeat demeanor as Wanda smiled faintly. "Looks like you won't have Juandissimo as a student after all."

Just as Wanda was about to sign her name on the sign-in sheet, she lifted her eyes to Ms. Sevante puzzledly. "What do you mean?"

"He was just here a few seconds ago; he requested to see about possibly finding a new tutor." Ms. Sevante informed casually, Wanda completely oblivious to this fact. "…I assume he didn't tell you."

Did the confusion on her face say otherwise? "…no?"

"Well, if you come back in another hour, you can meet with Irving to tutor him in Human Child Psychology." Ms. Sevante wasn't very attuned to Wanda's surprise.

Wanda watched Ms. Sevante return to stacking her papers, murmuring an uncertain "…okay?" before leaving to try and catch up to wherever Juandissimo might have gone.

Pushing passed the double doors of the library's entrance, she saw Juandissimo floating long the stone paths in the direction of the student union. She flew down the steps and managed to reach him just before he hovered any further, tapping his shoulder to make him turn in the air. Cosmo probably wouldn't like her if he knew she was speaking to Juandissimo like this, but if he was going to drop her just as quickly as he signed up, wouldn't he have thought to give her some kind of forewarning?

"Why would you drop me as a tutor and not tell me?" Wanda wasn't trying to be too pressing.

Juandissimo's facials gave little emotion outside of his arched brow. "…I assume he did not tell you?"

"…who didn't tell me what?"

"…you should ask tu novio."

"Wait!" Wanda grabbed his arm as he turned around to prevent him from leaving. "What are you talking about?!"

He looked down at his arm before looking to her with a stare as if asking to let him go, and sensing this, Wanda released him with a timid apology, subconsciously rubbing her arm from embarrassment. The last thing she wanted was to seem…overly concerned.

Letting out a somber sigh, Juandissimo faced his ex, his tone certainly as annoyed as he was about the entire situation. "Cosmo told me to drop you as my tutor because he does not want me around you."

She stared at him as if he couldn't possibly be serious. Not so much out of surprise more than out of the absolute audacity. "…that's…completely-"

"Absurd? I would agree." Juandissimo finished her statement. "It is okay, however. If there is anything I have learned, you must choose your battles…" she caught a hint of defeat in his blue-violet orbs emulating the defeat dripping in his words. "…and this is one I am not trying to fight."

She saw no point in stopping him from turning away once more, met with the same twinge in her heart as she watched him continue towards the student union. As much as Cosmo criticized her secrecy, for him to do such a thing behind her back was one thing; it was another for him to not tell her. Did she even want to be Juandissimo's tutor? Not when it came to her sanity. She knew she wouldn't hear the end of it from Cosmo which is why she tried to get out of it in the first place. But for him to take matters into his own hands without her permission or say in the matter struck a nerve she forgot she had, and in taking her phone out from her pocket, she opened it to send her boyfriend a message she wouldn't let him refuse.

**. . . . . .**

Pacing back and forth near the chairs of the lounging area, Wanda waited for her boyfriend to show up, mulling over what she would say and how to say it. It was not long after that Cosmo entered the student union from the west side entrance, and an instant shock of nerves chilled Wanda's skin as he loomed to her coolly, his unbothered combating her antsy.

Stopping just in front of his girlfriend, Cosmo greeted her in a sullen shrug. "What is it."

"What you did was low." Wanda firmly began, ignoring his discourtesy. "Even for you."

"What I did was necessary." Cosmo argued, well aware what she was referring to. "Since you didn't care enough to do it yourself."

"I already told you, I _tried_!" Wanda stood her ground. "But you just _had_ to make sure you got ex _actly_ what you wanted!"

"If you're this upset then go make him change his mind." Cosmo conceitedly optioned. "No one's stopping you."

Wanda creased her brow; he just _had_ to flip the script on her once again. "Cosmo, _why_ is it still _this_ difficult for you to trust me?! It's as if you continue to play this played-out narrative like _nothing_ has changed!"

"That's the thing, nothing _has_ changed." Cosmo contested. "You promised you'd have nothing to do with him, yet you still love him as a friend."

Wanda paused. "…Cosmo no I don-"

"I told you once, twice, _three_ times!" Cosmo interrupted with a stern finger in her face, no longer willing to show any ounce of patience. "Until you don't love him at all, stop pretending to love me!"

"If I'm pretending to love you, _why_ are you still with me?!"

"If you still love him, then _why_ are you still with _me_?!"

"Unbe-frickin-lievable!" Wanda let out frustrated groan, her own patience wearing thin. "No matter _what_ I say, it's _STILL_ my fault!"

This was when Wanda's peripheral vision noticed her twin sister fly passed them to the nearest girl's bathroom, appearing awfully distraught. Not that it wouldn't be the first time Blonda was upset over something arbitrary, but from what Wanda witnessed with her own eyes at the hospital the day before, something was extremely wrong.

Returning her attention to her boyfriend, Wanda slit her brow as she muttered "This isn't over." Before hovering across the path from the lounge area to the girl's bathroom, pushing the door upon entry.

With the door closing behind her, Wanda's ears picked up the sound of soft sobbing coming from one of the stalls nearest the backwall. This wasn't the 'woe is me' sobbing from what Wanda remembered growing up with a melodramatic sister; she physically felt the pang of strife heard in her cries. Even if they hadn't spoken in over a year, that didn't mean Wanda couldn't worry about her twin sister.

Cautiously, Wanda hovered from stall to stall, the voice of Blonda's despair increasing the closer Wanda flew. She stopped at the last stall, hugging herself to ease her nerves. Heartfelt conversations weren't exactly a regular occurrence between them. What were the chances that Blonda would even be honest with her?

Taking said chances, Wanda started off easy with a gentle "…Blonda?"

Seconds later, the sobbing ceased, instantaneous silence. Wanda waited for a response or some sort of acknowledgement, and when none came, Wanda continued in the same tender tone. "It's…it's Wanda."

When a few more moments passed, Blonda finally responded, failing miserably in masking the crack in her voice. "…w-why are you here?"

Wanda could ask herself the same question if she were honest. It wasn't every day Wanda followed her into the bathroom in what Wanda believed to be her most vulnerable moments. "…I…came in to use the bathroom and heard you crying…" Wanda decided on that narrative as the most probable explanation. "…is everything okay?"

"Is that any of your business?"

Wanda took a deep breath, expecting as much from who wasn't her favorite fairy and vice versa. If she was going to get anything out of Blonda, maybe she had to rephrase her question. "…h-how's Big Daddy?"

The silence that proceeded her question, followed by more crying, pinpointed Big Daddy as the source of Blonda's anguish. Did their uncles decide to go through with removing Big Daddy off life support? Or…had he already passed?

"…Blonda-"

"GO AWAY!"

Her outburst startled the pink fairy, not really expecting such a rash reaction, though she knew the topic of Big Daddy was a highly sensitive subject. Hovering quietly, Wanda debated on a way to get Blonda out from behind the stall. If she used her wand, she could unlock the door, but she was certain Blonda wouldn't take too kindly to that invasion of privacy. Doing so regardless, Wanda magically unlocked the bathroom stall, and with a gentle nudge, Wanda began to open the door before a hand forced the door shut in a reverberating slam.

Judging by this, being compassionate wasn't going to cut it. "Look, I'm not here to fight with you Blonda!" Wanda stated matter-of-factly, truly in no mood to argue with her sister after a pointless argument with her boyfriend. "I'm just asking what's wron-"

Blonda materialized with a glare, poofing a few feet away from Wanda. "If you _must_ know," she angrily began, crossing her arms. "Big Daddy's being taken off life support tomorrow…" An additional scoff escaped her lips as she bitterly huffed "You must be thrilled about that."

"Why would I be happy about someone dying, Blonda?!"

"You hated mammy!" Blonda refuted. "And you most _certain_ ly hated daddy!"

"That wasn't always tru-"

"And when Uncle Carmine told you daddy had that stroke way back, you said he was already dead to you!" Blonda interrupted. "So why give a damn now?!"

"Big Daddy dead to me and wanting him to die are two com _plete_ ly different things, Blonda!" Wanda swore if _one_ more person threw her past in her face _one_ more time…why must everyone make her out to be this horrible person?! "Besides, Big Daddy disowned _me_ remember?! So ex _cuse_ me if I wasn't exactly saddened by whatever he caused for himself!"

"You don't seem sad about it _now_!" Blonda sneered. "Better yet, you're probably just _waiting_ for the day I end up dead!"

That last sentence pierced through Wanda's heart more than she thought. "…I-I would _never-_ "

"You _hated_ me ever since we were kids!" Blonda continued, unbothered by the distraught wide in Wanda's fuchsia orbs. "You were always _so_ mean to me because everyone liked me _way_ more than they liked you!"

"You're not innocent in this either!" Wanda countered; if Blonda wanted to pour gasoline on a burning fire by bringing up old petty nonsense, then so be it. "You started bullying me along with your dumb friends and treated me like I didn't matter! Like I was just dirt under your shoe!"

"Because _you'd_ always insult me first!" Blonda disputed, inching closer to her sister. "You even told me I'd never amount to anything other than being some dumb blonde!"

"And was I wrong?!" Wanda challenged. "All those acting classes and agent interviews and look what good that did you! You're not noteworthy in _any_ capacity!"

"And yet daddy called _you_ a disgrace cuz you keep telling yourself that some idiot Cosma loves you, so how noteworthy does that make _you_?!"

Any defenses Wanda held crumbled to dust, every ounce of hurt and slight washing over her in a crashing wave. A year ago, a statement like would have easily been refuted. She didn't question Cosmo's love for her; there was nothing to question. As difficult as it was to be hated as a disgrace because she loved someone considered taboo, it didn't matter. She had Cosmo, Cosmo had her, and they would always have each other. Nowadays…as much as Wanda hated to admit…Blonda wasn't far off from Wanda's daily battles with herself, convincing herself much more than others that Cosmo still loved her in spite of his recent actions.

"You have _zero_ clue what I've been through!" Wanda noted the subtle crack in Blonda's voice once more, unblind to the moisture swelling in Blonda's glare as if to will herself to keep from crying again. "So next time you wanna judge someone, look in the damn mirror!"

Suddenly Blonda's phone rings in her skirt pocket, rolling her eyes as she reached inside to see what number came across on the caller ID. Wanda observed her whole demeanor soften from angry to anguished, Blonda pressing the answer button to bring the phone to her ear. "…hey Uncle Carmine…"

While Wanda couldn't make much of the conversation, the change in Blonda's facial expression to that of disbelief and shock showed that Carmine either gave her unsurprisingly good news or devastatingly bad news.

"…yeah, she's right here…" Blonda then turned her eyes to Wanda, Wanda attempting to read her somewhat blank mien. "…I'll tell her…yeah…okay, bye."

Once the call disconnected, Wanda saw Blonda return her phone to her pocket before she noticed the slight puzzlement in her twin's stare towards the ground. "…what is it?"

"…it's daddy." Blonda's tone almost gave off the vibe of bad news until she spoke again. "He's awake off life support…and he's asking to see us both."

Wanda's brow scrunched in confusion. "…you mean to see you."

"No." Blonda uneasily assured. "Uncle Carmine said he asked for both of us."

Not even the second confirmation answered the buzzing questions in Wanda's mind.

* * *

Wanda cautiously followed Blonda down the corridors of the intensive care unit, the pit in her stomach churning in anticipation. Never in a million years did Wanda ever expect to see her father again. They'd ended their relationship on such horrible terms…and now here he was asking to see her after coming out of a coma.

She didn't know how to explain the roaring perplexity mixed with anxiety coursing through her, so much so that goosebumps made her shiver. Last they spoke, he wished she were dead instead of her mother, and he showed zero mercy kicking her out of his life. Her lasting memory of Big Daddy was that of a callous, shallow being with no regard to the daughter who could never live up to his impossible standards. Why would he want to see her? What could he possibly want?

When they arrived at the glass door of room 213, Blonda slid the door open which garnered the attention of both their uncles as well as Dr. Studwell, and as Blonda rushed towards Big Daddy's bedside, Wanda felt frozen from the sight of her father, his weary eyes smiling weakly to Blonda as she hugged him tearfully, expressing how wonderful it is that he's finally awake.

Wanda looked to her uncles for some kind of answer, only to be met with their own baffled shrugs as Uncle Piero admitted "He woke up askin' for Lenora too sooo…we dunno."

…okay, so maybe he wasn't 'all the way there.' That would explain a lot.

"…I'm so sorry, daddy…" Blonda whispered, blinking her tears to fall. "…for everything…"

Turning back to her father, she watched as Big Daddy feebly lifted a tender hand to Blonda's cheek, leading her to lift her own hand to press his palm against her warm smile. "…m-me too…buttercup." Big Daddy spoke gently, his voice gravelly from the tube that was removed.

It had been a long time since Wanda had seen her father so loving. Owning his own business in a competitive market hardened him over the years into the intimidating hardass he molded himself to be, and Wanda remembered slowly but surely suffering the brunt of it while Blonda got off easy, often rewarded with the soft side he chose not to show too much.

Blonda brought his hand to her lips, giving it a delicate kiss before setting it onto his chest, and when Big Daddy's fuchsia eyes fell upon the sight of his estranged daughter, while Wanda mostly expected some kind of glare, she saw astonishment mixed with regret, something she also had not seen in the longest time.

Two sets of pink eyes stared at each other, neither one brave enough to make the first move. Wanda held her arms around herself as if to provide her own comfort, filled with so much uncertainty on what to do in this situation. Should she approach him? Should she wait for him to call her to him? Should she just turn around and leave? What else could she do besides just stand like a deer in headlights?

"…c-come here…sugarplum."

A jolt of nerves shocked her from his hoarse request. She hadn't heard him call her that since she was literally five.

What…in the regression…?

Swallowing the apprehension in her throat, she gradually hovered to him, feeling everyone occupant in the room's eyes locked on her as if anticipating her every move. Blonda shifted to where she could move closer to Big Daddy's bedside, and Big Daddy lifted another fragile hand, this time reaching for Wanda's which she hesitantly laid hers into his. She watched his weakened fingers curl around hers, seeing Big Daddy's gaze as she searched for anything in them that could explain what was happening.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Big Daddy gathered the strength to grin faintly. "…thank you…for coming."

Her resentment wanted to curse him, yet her reply came out as "…y-you're welcome."

As if things couldn't get any more strange, Big Daddy's smile fell to a small frown, remorse glossing over his fuchsia orbs. "…I-I'm sorry…"

Two of the most powerful words anyone could ever say, two words she never thoughts she'd hear him say, were the two words that brought on the waterworks. She wiped her eyes with her free arm just as quickly as she felt them water; she couldn't show weakness, not when she wasn't sure if she should believe he could be sincere.

"…p-please…" he continued, his voice fading just above a whisper. "…forgive me…"

Wanda couldn't believe what she was hearing. For the longest time, she convinced herself that forgiveness for his wrongs towards her would never come about simply because he would never become humble enough to admit fault. He hardly ever admitted fault, especially when it came to Wanda. Everything was her fault, and he showed no shame telling her so. And while she was honored that he would take responsibility for the ailment in their relationship, she wasn't sure how she could forgive someone who labeled her a disgrace to the Fairywinkle name. Was she just supposed to forget all the insults he ever said to her? All the times he dismissed her feelings and her suffering, all the times he yelled at her to 'suck it up' and stop crying? As much as she tried to live on as if none of those events occurred, every subtle reminder of his wrath brought about the saddened little girl in her, the same saddened little girl whose cries were often left unheard.

She stared into his eyes pleading for her forgiveness, her soul growing more conflicted with each second that ticked by. She harbored so much anger and bitterness towards him for so many years that any laughter and joy once shared between them faded within the crevice of her earliest memories. But while the saddened little girl within her had been ignored by him, that little girl longed for the father that used to love her just as he continued to love Blonda…

Wanda was unsure if she could forgive him…but a small part of her at least wanted to try.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was originally gonna kill off Big Daddy cuz, well, it's AU and I've already bent all FOP universe rules anyway. But...I decided against it, only cuz deep down I do kind of want Big Daddy and Wanda to resolve their differences. Plus, we all know Big Daddy does have a bit of a softer side when it comes to his daughters. See ya next week!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So in this chapter, this is why there's a trigger warning. Tried to keep it rated T, but it does get a bit graphic.

Turing the corner of Teller Hall from her last class of the day, Blonda clutched the straps of her backpack, floating passed different crowds gathered among the halls. A week into the new school year, she managed to avoid seeing Professor Cardician as well as avoid him seeing her. No words had been exchanged since the day she slipped up and slept with him after learning the reason for his infidelity, and she planned on keeping it that way…

At least, that's what she originally hoped.

She felt a strong hand grab hold of her arm, followed by the sudden pull of magical teleportation from outside the halls to inside the office she never wanted to see again. Gaining her bearings, she was faced with ocean blue eyes full of wonder and plea, a firm hand still clutched to her wrist.

"Why did you block my number?!" Professor Cardician probed as if entitled to an explanation.

"You're joking, right?" she muttered in response. "I don't waste time with married men."

Almost instantaneously, his eyes fell to the floor. "I'm…not married anymore."

"Oh?" Blonda arched her brow. "Finally got a divorce, I see."

"…not quite." She tried to gage whether he truly felt any mourning judging by how vague he kept his expression. "…while staying in one of the nursing homes for her dementia, my wife caught a nasty infection that quickly shut down all of her vital organs…" his gaze lifted to hers. "…she died in July."

Softening her glare, Blonda wasn't so hostile that she couldn't have a heart for a lost loved one. Just under 48 hours ago, she thought her father would be joining her mother three-feet under. "Wow…I'm…sorry for your loss."

"…it's alright…" Carefully, he loomed to her, his tender finger stroking the bare of her forearm. "…that's why I need you, now more than ever." His palm rose from her arm to cup her cheek, unabashed in how a motion that once made her feel loved now made her uncomfortable. "…we can be free, to love each other again."

Blonda reacted with a shove of his hand, any empathy she felt for him quickly melting away. "…I really can't believe you! Do you _seriously_ think you have any chance with me again?!"

"Actually, I do." he replied confidently, reaching to hold her by her waist. "I knew ever since we made love in my car that day."

" _That_ was a mistake!" She pushed his hand away once more, the memory of the day he learned of his wife's dementia cringing her nerves. "And I have absolutely _no_ desire to do that again!"

Despite the seriousness in her brow, he scoffed as if calling her bluff. "Is that so?"

"It _is_ so!" she reached into the side pocket of her backpack for her wand to escape. "Now _leave_ me alone and pretend you never met me!"

Just as she was about to raise her wand, he cuffed his grip around both wrists, pinning her to the wall as her wand dropped from her hand. She struggled against him as he pressed his torso to hers, kissing the nape of her neck.

"Stop!" Blonda grunted, attempting to pull away from him. "Get _off_!"

"We both know you don't really want me to…" there was a hint of uncharacteristic menace in his amorous tone, his lips traveling down to just below her collarbone. "…I can tell you missed this just as much."

She resisted against his restraint, attempting to yank her arms out of his grasp to no avail. "Get off me!"

Yet he chose not to listen, moving one of his hands from her wrist to fondle her breast with most of his weight keeping her pinned to the wall.

"What are you _doing_?!" her cries grew more desperate, pushing her free hand against his chest in attempt to shove him away. " _Stop_!"

His other hand traveled down to her midsection, tucking its way inside of her skirt.

"Pantaleo, _please_!" Her frustration morphed into utter fear as his hand loosened the buckle from her pink belt. " _Stop_ it!"

Forcing his hand inside her underwear, she winced from his fingers rubbing harshly around the most sensitive area, a lot more pain than pleasure. Clawing at his hand, she yanked it from inside her skirt, but he leaned in to nibble her neck, flinching from the nicks on her skin. Never was he ever this aggressive with her. No, he wasn't the Pantaleo she remembered. This Pantaleo had a more sinister agenda…

As she kept her attempts to push him off, he then grabbed both her arms and dragged her from the wall onto the couch, tossing her against the hunter-green cushion. Before she had the chance to lift herself up, he gripped both wrist in one hand while he used his own wand to tie a tight rope around them after positioning them over her head. His hostage frightened her to the point of screams, but he used his wand to mute them with a cloth tied around her head, stuffed inside her mouth. His lips had the audacity to curl in spite of the obvious terror wide in her eyes, leaning down to speak softly in her ear. "Remember…we have to keep it down."

Through muffled cries, she felt his knees restrain her torso to the couch on either side, straddling her. She watched as he unbuckled his belt to pull them down, exposing his white boxers. She mustered enough strength to try and wiggle her way out, yet he forcefully repositioned her onto her stomach, ignoring her painful whimpers as he lifted her arms over her head behind her back. Propping her backside in the air, he jerked her leggings down along with her underwear, and after using his wand to remove his underwear, his positioned his extended member to a hole she herself never wanted anything near…

Her wail muffled in the cloth as he thrusted himself inside the delicate opening of her rectum.

Each pump burned more than the last, every motion shocking her body in the most horrible agony she'd ever experienced. Her eyes stung with fresh tears pouring from her clasped eyes, the thread of her soul ripping inch by inch. His motions held no mercy to her cries, his pleasure unfazed by her growing suffering.

Her trauma longed for an escape, floating somewhere else like an out-of-body experience. Her mind imagined the rushing waters of Fairy Falls, a place she hadn't been since childhood when her parents took her and her sister for a family vacation. With each of her withering screams grew his erotic grunts, a numbing buzz tingling her veins the deeper her mind delved into the imagination of whispering currents and sprits of fresh natural mist drizzling into the air. A drone rang in her ears as her six-year-old self leaned joyfully over the gold wooden rails of the bridge, reaching as if she could touch the flowing river itself…

A climactic moan followed one final push, the rush of fluids flooding inside jerking her back to her horrid reality.

Tears trickled from emotionless eyes, hearing him huff to catch his breath. She felt him pull out, but that was the extent of what she could feel in that moment, all other senses numbed in disgust.

…how could he do this?

Professor Cardician took his time pulling his underwear and pants up, an arrogant smile arching his mouth as he snickered "Thanks for the piece of ass…literally."

Her sniffles did nothing to soften his hardened heart, and as he buckled his pants and picked up his wand, he made his way to the door before pausing, his serious gaze looking over his shoulder. "By the way…you tell anyone, and I'll make sure you go down with me."

There had been rumors around campus (none really pertaining to Blonda specifically) that multiple students and professors were engaging in 'inappropriate conduct' on campus. These relationships have since been deemed illegal by the fairy court as professors are in a position of authority over their students which can lead to a conflict of interest when it comes to grade performance, even if both participants are consenting adults. Because of this, Headmaster Dumblesnore cracked down on rules in the student/faculty handbooks; any student and/or faculty reported or found to have any sexual/intimate relations will result in termination of that faculty and expulsion of that student, and such consequence went into effect as soon as it was passed by board of education.

So if Blonda told anyone of higher power or higher authority, even the police, punishment would not be isolated to Professor Cardician, and that was a risk she simply couldn't afford to make…

With that, he turned the doorknob and exited the office, shutting the door with Blonda left alone with her bottom half still exposed.

Willing herself to move, she whimpered as her wings gathered the strength to lift her from the couch to the floor, retrieving her wand by sitting backwards so her tied hands could reach. When she caught a hold of it, she mustered magic to untie herself and remove the cloth from her mouth, as well as to re-clothe herself. Everything ached, just the simple act of fluttering her wings shot waves of pain in between her legs. Raising her wand, she left the office in a magical cloud, only to be faced with a young fairy with elf-like ears and puzzled lilac eyes.

A muffin top of lilac curls hatted Binky's round head, his lilac Victorian vest just reaching just above his thighs clothed with black tights. His white Chelsea boots complimented the crystalized stud above his left nostril, and an assortment of rings accessorized his eight fingers. Binky dealt with a lot of banter for his whiney, high-pitched voice, often labeled much younger than he was. Blonda knew him from a few of her acting courses, but because he was just a freshman, they didn't see much of each other.

"…A-are you okay?"

Her glossy eyes stared into his worried expression, but as soon as they made eye contact, Blonda rushed past him down the hall, turning the corner to the nearest bathroom. Bursting through the door, she hurried into the first stall available with a slam. A shaky hand locked the hinge, and she let out an unsteady breath as she pulled down the leggings beneath her skirt, finding blood that seeped through her underwear…her blood.

Distraught tremors overtook her, her throat tightening in short intakes of breath. She cupped her mouth as sobs heaved her chest, shutting her eyes as tears came sprouting like a fountain.

The creek of the bathroom entrance led Blonda to mute herself, listening to someone floating into the stall next to her to do their business. She struggled to withhold her breaking heart as the other occupant flushed the toilet, leaving the stall before she heard hiss of a water faucet. Once the water shut off, the rip of a paper towel dried the stranger's hand, and when Blonda heard the door creek once more, she withered to the cold floor as her sanity melted into a complete loss of control.

* * *

Trudging up the steps of _Gemini's Palace_ to the second-floor apartment, Blonda did her best to wipe the silent tears that continued to flow. She traveled down the outdoor corridor once she reached the top of the steps, using her keys to unlock the door. After she managed to collect herself from the bathroom floor, the only thing she could think to do was simply go home. Whether that be the best thing for her right now, she had no desire to be anywhere with other fairies around.

Entering inside, she shut the door with her back pressed against it. She flinched from a shock of pain in between in legs, worsening the throb against her skull. She willed her eyes to open passed squinting, seeing Alewandro asleep on the couch, still dressed in his white T-shirt unzipped under his leather jacket and her bleach-washed jeans. A few shoulder-length strands of parted silk waves strung over his face, and by the looks of what played across the flat-screen TV, she'd fall asleep too if she had to listen to Wizzy report the news on FTV.

Throughout the summer, Cupid and Blonda already had plans to live in one of the off-campus student apartments, and originally, they were only looking at two bedrooms. That was until Cupid received a call from the Magnificos a few weeks before Juandissimo's release. Mental health professionals advised for Juandissimo not to live alone, and since Cupid had been Juandissimo's lone line of connection outside of family, his parents asked Cupid if Juandissimo could live with him. Blonda, obviously, wasn't 100% on board at first, and for Blonda's sake, neither was Cupid. However, as much as Cupid hated to admit, he still had a soft spot for Juandissimo and just couldn't say no, which in turn, neither could Blond since she didn't want to live alone and had no other options.

In Blonda's mind, the only saving grace was that the Magnificos requested Alewandro move in as well. Not so much to strictly monitor Juandissimo, but more to be the support their parents thought would help him stay on track in spite of their relationship still a bit strained. She assumed the reason their parents just couldn't let them get their own two-bedroom was probably to save money. After all, the more roommates, the lesser one's portion of the rent. Though as long as there was one Magnifico she could tolerate, she had to just grin and bear it, only because she knew Cupid and how big his heart is.

It had been almost two weeks since all four inhabited the four-bedroom, and so far, she mainly interacted with Cupid while the Magnifico brothers pretty much kept to themselves. She would make small talk with Alewandro a handful of times, but for the most part, he had his own life with his girlfriend and her group of friends, and it was rare for him to be home at the same time as she. There hadn't been much communication between her and Juandissimo, and Blonda had every intention to keep it that way. She did notice that Juandissimo had changed, but for the sake of her heart, she needed to remain guarded.

After what transpired, she regretted ever believing she could trust men again…

Floating to grab the remote off the coffee table, she shut off the TV, ensuring Alewandro had not stirred before setting the remote down and hovering to her bedroom by the front door. Her and Cupid's bedrooms shared one wall while the Magnifico brothers' bedrooms shared the wall adjacent to theirs. Entering inside, she let her backpack drop from her grasp as she wilted her way to her queen bed where she laid atop her teal duvet, curling into a tiny ball. She brought her hands to her face, shielding any sunlight seeping through her closed blinds, and she allowed her emotions to take over, bursting into tears.

**. . . . . .**

Fuchsia orbs parted groggily, lifting her head hazed from unexpected slumber. It took some time for her eyes to adjust to the darkness within the four white walls of her bedroom, pondering how long she'd slept since she didn't remember ever falling asleep.

A muffled vibration caught her ears, coming from the direction of her backpack. She attempted to reach for the lamp on her nightstand, wincing from how sore the entire bottom half of her body was. Her eyes squinted from the sudden halo of light as she forced her arms to lift her weight off the bed, floating to her backpack a couple feet away where she found her phone in one of her side pockets, and she opened her phone to a recent text from Cupid informing her that whenever she was wake, she can find the dinner he brought in the fridge. Just the thought of food churned the acids in her empty stomach.

Closing her phone, she placed it next to her lamp before going to her door, apprehensive on whether she had the courage to leave the sanctity of her room. Cupid knew her well enough to know when something was off; if he were to ever find out…

With a deep breath, she twisted the doorknob, finding the indigo suede couch empty with all the lights of the living/kitchen area lighting the open space. Turning to her slight left, she found Cupid sitting on one of the black wood barstools, eating his Caesar salad over the gold marble countertop sectioning the kitchen from the living room. Occupied with texting on his phone, he didn't notice Blonda approaching until she took the barstool right next to him, greeted by his signature friendly smile.

"Hey, princess." Cupid's smile slightly faded into concern when he noticed a few of her flaxen curls out of place and how red and puffy Blonda's eyes were. "…you alright?"

 _Not unless I stop breathing…_ "I'm…here." came her mumbled reply, keeping her gaze downwards.

"Nah, something's wrong." Cupid wasn't letting her off that easy. "Your makeup is literally a mess and you never take naps. What is it?"

There was just no way she could tell him…not unless she wanted to face the threat of getting expelled at the hands of Professor Cardician. "…I just…don't feel well." she sighed, hoping he'd settle for a half truth.

"You need anything?" Cupid offered. "Maybe some food? Or something to help you sleep it off?"

"…I'm not hungry…a-and that's okay." Blonda respectfully declined, struggling to meet his baby-blue eyes. "…I'll just…take a shower and turn in early."

"You sure?"

"Yeah…" Blonda timidly looked to Cupid. "…anyone else home?"

"Alewandro went to visit his girlfriend." Cupid finished the last of his salad. "And I have no clue where Juandissimo is."

Both looked to the direction of keys unlocking the front door, watching as Juandissimo entered into the apartment with bookbag in tote. "Hey, Juan." Cupid welcomed with a small grin as Blonda averted her eyes from the door. "How's it going?"

"It is going…" Juandissimo shrugged. "Coming back from meeting with Swizzle."

"Oh yeah, your tutor!" Cupid suddenly remembered. "How'd that go?"

Juandissimo's answer came in that of an arched brow. "…how do you think?"

"Yeah, I heard she can be a bit of a shrew…" Cupid pouted, aware of Swizzle's 'not so nice' reputation around campus. "But she's helpful, right?"

"If that is what you want to call it…" Juandissimo made no acknowledgment to Blonda when he floated passed across to his bedroom, and Blonda stared as he closed his door, presumably retiring for the night.

Cupid turned back to Blonda, waiting for her to look at him. "So like…are you two _ever_ going to speak? Cuz like…this awkward silence is still like…awkward."

She noted Juandissimo's obvious distance from her. Aside from moments where one would catch the other staring, she suspected he was trying to pretend she didn't exist, perhaps for his own mental health. When he and Alewandro first moved in, her facials weren't shy about her disdain for their new living arrangements. Maybe he sensed that and thought it best not to ripple the waters. Cupid did tell them both that, eventually, they needed to come to some kind of resolution if they were going to survive under the same roof for a whole year.

Easier said than done.

Having her fill of socializing for the day, she rose from the barstool, heading in the direction of her own room, not bothering to look back as Cupid awkwardly wished her goodnight.

Once in her bedroom, her mind found itself reliving Professor Cardician's disregard for her consent, the startling transformation from his loving, gentle nature to a vile, obsessed…monster. Then again, should she be surprised? He showed little to no remorse stringing her along as the side-chick while cheating on his mentally-ill wife. Pleasing his own selfish sexual desires must have been his true motive the entire time, and professing his love for her was just bait to get caught up in his ploy.

Regardless of previous consensual intercourse between them, could she have fought harder to stop him? It'd been a long time, and she didn't specifically say 'no.'

…maybe she secretly wanted it too?

No, the way she would have wanted wouldn't include that level of restraint, nor that level of force. And if he truly cared about her, he would have respected her enough not to take it that far. He so viciously and unapologetically mutilated her body just to pleasure himself and got off on her suffering.

The only man she ever truly loved with her heart only loved her for her body. Just like all the rest…

Blinking away her thoughts, she hovered to her bathroom, flipping the light. The tattered reflection staring back at her made it almost impossible to recognize; her hair was in shambles, her mascara left blackened streaks, her pink lipstick smudged every which direction, and the bags under her eyes bled eyeliner and teal eyeshadow. Leaning over her sink, examined the broken spirit before her. All the years spent fretting over her appearance seemed trivial in that moment. She looked a hot mess…yet she couldn't be bothered.

Reaching for her crop top, she lifted it over her head, removing one layer as she continued to stare into the wide rectangular glass plastered over the rose-gold of her marble counter. Her brow scrunched at the sight of her pink lace bra, opposite to the usual manner she admired her physique. Slowly, she unbuckled her skirt, removing that layer as she saw dried scarlet between her legs, staining her leggings. She removed her leggings before she hesitantly, pulled at her matching lace panties, ashamed at how her favorite matching set had been foiled.

Removing the last layer, she looked down to the lace-fabric crotch, soiled in the stains of her blood.

She felt so disgusted with herself…how could she ever see herself the same again?

Acting impulsively, she tore off her bra, throwing both bra and panty into the trash bin instead of her laundry hamper. Keeping both items meant holding on to the nightmare of how Professor Cardician ruined them. What made it worse…that was her favorite set.

Growing more repulsed with her reflection by the second, she flew to turn on her showerhead, waiting for the water to turn warm before going in, drawing the shower curtains. As the steady rain of water cascaded, she held her hand underneath, observing coolly how the water trickled down and off her skin. Floating closer, she gradually allowed the rushing sprits to spray over her hair, closing her eyes to shield from the running water, gliding down to the very tips of her toes.

She opened her lungs to inhale the heated steam, focusing on the way in which water splattered and pattered down the drain. Her mind drifted once more, this time to the steamy showers of his firm yet soft hands stroking down the sides of her waist, down to the sides of her hips, feeling every inch of her thighs. His hands, brushing the moist of her skin ever so gently, raising goosebumps as his fingers traveled freely. Purposely stopping just above her bikini line, his other hand circling her bust, teasing for arousal. Senses heighten when his hands venture to her backside, cupping each cheek…

Until his fist forced itself into her rectum.

With a sharp breath, Blonda jolted from beneath the showerhead, eyes widened in startlement. They veered towards the faded streaks of red running into the drain, trailing from in between her legs. Her hand began to tremble when she reached down to the source, whimpering with a soft touch before she pulled her hand to her line of vision, palm covered in red.

Tears pressed the back of her eyes as she slowly hovered away from the water, hugging herself as her wings lowered her to the shower floor. Shoulders rocking in turmoil, she doubled over as her cries echoed off the shower walls.

* * *

Despite how bright the morning sun glimmered through the cotton pink clouds, Blonda's moon dulled the shine she used to exude.

Part of her wanted to just stay in bed, sleep the day away, but it normally wasn't a good look to skip class this early in the semester. Lucky, her lighter schedule days mostly included electives outside of Teller Hall. She didn't think she could handle seeing that same chiseled jaw and ocean blue eyes that now haunted her so.

What made everything worse was that not a soul can ever know. Cursed to carry a forbidden secret. Maybe that was his intension, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. Beforehand, if word of their relation got out, he'd mostly be the suffer of consequence. Now that students were held to the same level of accountability, he knew he could get away with his heinous crime as long as Blonda kept her mouth shut. She was backed into a corner; telling anyone who could report this incident could ruin her life. Sexual crimes were public record, so anyone can find all the dirty details of an act Blonda never thought would happen to her. Her reputation in Fairywood would literally die before it even began, everyone on campus could probably blame her or shame her for being so 'careless.'

Her family, her father…they'd be so disappointed. A relationship? With a professor?! She just knew Big Daddy would completely disapprove. She can hear him now; "All tha guys out der, any guy you could evah' _want_ in dis world, and you lower ya standards for a dirty ol' creep?! Where's ya dignity?! Where's ya self-respect?!" Thinking about that hypothetical…she would be the true disgrace to the Fairywinkle name.

No matter how she could spin it, he had won, and she had no choice but to concede.

"…Blonda?"

She heard the nasally voice from behind among the other background chatter of other traveling students, halting her flight. Recognizing who called out to her, she turned to see Binky twiddling his thumbs in a reserved manner. "…y-yes?"

"Can…I ask you something?" Binky asked timidly.

Blonda couldn't help but be nervous as well. "…what?"

"Um…" he was slow to approach, and Blonda could see the apprehension in his eyes. "…I-I heard someone crying from outside Professor Cardician's door yesterday…"

Her heart plummeted to the pit of her stomach.

"…w-was that you?"

She should have known; they ran into each other _right_ outside his office, _right_ after…it happened. Looking both directions first, Blonda took Binky by the hand and led him to the back of Taurus Hall, taking him anywhere nearby that was away from any crowds. Letting go of his hand, her paranoia kept her voice lowered yet stern. "You _have_ to stay quiet about this."

Binky shook his head in denial. "…b-but if something bad happened in there, you need to report it."

"…I can't." she looked away regretfully.

Though Binky just couldn't understand. "Why not? He can't get away with it."

"He'll find a way to blame it on me…" Blonda shamefully admitted, hugging herself. "…I can't deal with that too…"

"But…" Binky whimpered. "…I don't believe it's your fault…whatever it is."

She lifted her eyes to his, so taken by his pure nature. He was so innocent…maybe too innocent. "…thank you." Blonda spoke softly. "…but…I need you to keep this between us." She attempted a more serious look, thinking it would get her point across. "…can you do that?"

He simply stared at her. "But…y-you gotta tell someone-"

"You heard…nothing." Her voice became more stern. "You _saw_ …nothing. You know… _nothing_. Understand?"

"I know what I heard and I know what I saw!" Binky protested much to Blonda's dislike. "And if you don't tell someone, I will!"

"You don't even know what happened!" Blonda argued. "Besides, for all you know, I could have been acting out a scene!"

" _That_ didn't sound like acting, Blonda!" Binky pointed out, obviously too smart for his own good. "That sounded like you were in some kind of trouble!"

"Okay, listen…" Blonda calmed her tone, setting both hands delicately on Binky's shoulders, making him meet her stare. "I need you to understand Binky…I tell anyone, and I can kiss my degree goodbye."

Just by looking at him, she knew the wheels in his head spun wildly, possibly fighting between morals and judgement. He turned away remorsefully, balling his fists. He was more upset than she assumed he would, and he was clueless to what went down behind closed doors.

"Binky, please…" Blonda pleaded with him. "…don't tell anyone."

"…tell me and I won't."

Her eyes blinked twice. "…wait, what?"

Having never seen him so serious, Binky raised his lilac to meet her fuchsia. "…how can I keep a secret when I don't know the secret to keep?"

…hot damn. Kid kinda had a point. "…fine." Blonda groaned defeatedly. "But if I tell you…your lips are sealed."

Binky held her gaze, carefully removing her hands off of him. "…deal."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously, I've never experienced rape of any form (thankfully) and there's not enough research in the world to feel the same emotions an actual rape victim feels. I tried my best to convey what Blonda would think and feel, so hopefully that came across. For anyone who actually experienced this or something similar, I am so incredibly sorry that you went through something like that, and I'm even more sorry if law enforcement or the court system didn't listen to you or see any fault in the rapist. We no longer have a president in the U.S. who pretty much enforced rape culture, but it's still a huge issue and the "Me Too" movement is so important for stories like Blonda.

**Author's Note:**

> Y'know, I really don't know if Papa Cosmo would have a different middle name, but since Cosmo hasn't been officially defined as a 'Jr.', I came up with Caesar for a middle name...y'know...Julius...Caesar...**cough** anyways. Feel free ta tell meh wha ya think!


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